AMHERST, Mass. — Jonathan Weisberg, assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Toronto, will visit Amherst College on Thursday, Dec. 8, to deliver a lecture titled “Probability and Nature’s Design.”

The lecture, the fourth of five in the 2011–2012 Forry and Micken Lecture Series on Rationality and Religious Belief, will take place in Pruyne Lecture Hall (Room 115 of the Fayerweather building) at 4:30 p.m.

In his lecture, Weisberg will talk about the controversial theory of intelligent design. “Had the fundamental forces of nature been just a little bit different, our universe would contain nothing but hydrogen,” he explains. “Some believe this to be evidence of intelligent design. Such fine-tuning is unlikely to happen by chance, but is to be expected if the universe was designed. Others disagree: they say the evidence is being misrepresented, or that it is uninformative because biased.” Weisberg will evaluate the arguments on both sides and discuss his own conclusions.

Weisberg holds bachelor of arts degrees in mathematics and philosophy from the University of Washington and a doctorate in philosophy from Rutgers University. His research focuses mainly on epistemology and decision theory; he also teaches some philosophy of science, logic and metaphysics.

The lecture series is funded by the Forry and Micken Fund in Philosophy and Science. For further information, please call (413) 542-5805.